Structural insulated panel for building construction

Abstract

A structural insulated panel (SIP), such as 8 foot×24 foot, is made with a foam plastic core, oriented strand board on each face, and structural paper on either side of that, all bonded together. The oriented strand board capped with structural paper provides a particularly strong wall structure. Also, the structural paper provides a finished surface as manufactured. SIP-to-SIP joints are created using an insert sandwiched between end portions of in-line-joined SIP panels.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of provisional application Ser. No. 61 / 056,217, filed May 27, 2008, entitled STRUCTURAL INSULATED PANEL FOR BUILDING CONSTRUCTION, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein in its entirety.BACKGROUND[0002]The present invention relates to structural insulated panels such as for building exterior walls, and building structures using same.[0003]Structural insulated panels (SIPS) have been around for a number of years. In the 1950's until about 1980, panels were made 4 feet wide and up to 12 feet long with commodity plywood and other materials. Some of these panels have finishes that were acceptable as exterior wall surfaces. The most common was a plywood pattern called reverse board and batten or sometimes T 1-11 ply. The inside of that was a material such as drywall or plywood. The center of these panels was plastic foam to complete a SIP panel.[0004]The SIP panels discussed ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The present invention is a structural insulated panel made with a foam plastic core and oriented strand board attached on either side to form board faces. The oriented strand board faces are capped with a structural paper that provides a finished surface. The core, OSB, and structural paper are all securely bonded together. The invention also includes a \"frameless\" building where exterior walls are constructed primarily using structural insulated panels. The building wall includes two structural insulated panels positioned in-plane and with end edges adjacent. Each panel includes a foam core, an OSB facer on each side, and structural paper on each side. The panels also include an end portion with OSB facer extending beyond an outer surface of the foam core to define a cavity and an insert positioned between the end portions and extending into the cavity. The insert includes a foam core and OSB facer on each side, the OSB facer on the insert fitting inside the OSB facer on the panels; and fasteners fastening each panel to the insert. These technical effects provide improved insulation and durability for building walls, as well as simplified construction methods."

Problems solved by technology

The 4 foot wide panels were too costly and inefficient to install when one big panel could replace six small 4-foot-wide panels.

However, a problem with this big 8 foot by 24 foot panel was that it did not have a finished surface on the inside nor outside, since OSB does not provide it.

Unfortunately, this process of covering inside and outside surfaces after building / wall construction is very expensive and made construction with SIPs more expensive than conventional “stick” construction.

Even though SIP construction could save 30% to 50% of the heat loss, there has been continued resistance to use the SIP systems because of costs of material versus “stick” construction.

Images